The Habs should have kept Guy Boucher

There's an interesting point of view from John Grigg of The Hockey News. He argues the Habs should have given the head coach job to Guy Boucher, instead of losing him. He says :

Quote:

Some will say you can’t fire a coach who just led a No. 8 seed past both the Presidents’ Trophy winner and the reigning Stanley Cup champion en route to the conference final, but that’s essentially what Montreal did with its playoff hero, Jaroslav Halak. The Canadiens bid adieu to him in favor of the guy they thought was better for them in the long run. Why not do the same with Martin?

It wouldn't have happened Yzerman offered him an NHL contract as a head coach, It doesn't matter always. He's a Quebec professional & will always take the best job, when your a professional, you always take the job, not the City. He has to!

Well, they COULD have fired Martin, but think about it: Martin is earning 1.5M per season for the next 4 years (5 last year). So, that means that if you fire him, you need to pay him 1.5M for the next 4 years right? Then, you still need to pay Carbo for 3 years I think.

That's a lot of money you know? Molson have money, but they won't start to fire everybody and give money to anyone. There are business men, so they don't want to lose money.

Right around the time Boucher signed with TB, I was disappointed that we didn't get him into our organization (perhaps as an associate or something). We seem to groom very good coaches in the minors.

After awhile I was quite over it. Yeah JM makes puzzling decisions, but I actually do have a lot of confidence in him. In a way he's a lot like Price. Doesn't show too much emotion and seems to know how to correct things. In addition to Price (who I think will change in this respect this season), JM finds a way to win in the end. He's a very wily mind.

Boucher could be an amazing coach, yet to see in the NHL. I'm not upset that we have Martin.

We can just sign him after JMs contract. It's not like he would turn down his dream job with the Habs when he becomes available. Its unfortunate that the timing was off with Boucher but by no means was it a mistake. Martin is a top tier coach, 2nd in wins and perfect for this teams make up. In case anyone has noticed, he took us to the ECF and we're 3-1-1 to start the season and easily could be 5-0.

Whats everyones problem? Things are good right now. I mean does hurt that much to not bellyache for a few days!? Incredibly ridiculous.

Well, they COULD have fired Martin, but think about it: Martin is earning 1.5M per season for the next 4 years (5 last year). So, that means that if you fire him, you need to pay him 1.5M for the next 4 years right? Then, you still need to pay Carbo for 3 years I think.

So you're paying Carbo + Martin. But Boucher is a rookie coach. He doesn't have the same leverage as Martin does. How much more money than Carbo+Martin is Carbo+Martin+Boucher?

If Martin is not doing a good job for you, isn't Boucher's rookie-coach salary worth it as a premium for an upgrade? Because that's the premium to get him.

Quote:

Originally Posted by airic000

Like the article mentions, that exact same message was sent to the goalie (Halak).

Which is particularly interesting because Halak got the team to the ECF, and Martin was merely dragged there by said goalie.

Like the article mentions, that exact same message was sent to the goalie (Halak).

Halak and Martin were in two completely different situations. Had they kept Martin over Boucher at the end of Martins contract then it would be the same. The reality of the matter was that Martin was in year 1 of a 4 year contract and took a bunch of strangers to the ECF. Boucher has won 3 games in NHL as of now. Back then he had zero NHL wins. Hard to fire and PAY a guy for 3 more years when he's gone over and above what was expected to do. Halak was sacrificed to keep Pleks. If anyone should get the ire of the fans it technically should he Pleks as there was no way to keep both.

Sends a great message for future coaches. Get the team to the ECF and get fired!

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryI

Julien got fired during the season not after leading his team to the 3rd round.

Halak got the team to the ECF, not Martin.

Lou Lamoriello fired Robbie Ftorek and Claude Julien while heading into the playoffs.
Julien's team was first in their division at the time and had fought through a numbr of injuries. Ftorek's team was a contender.

What message did it send to future coaches? Get the team into first place and get fired? Or we will make any move that helps us win?

Ftorek was removed for Larry Robinson, who won the cup that year. Seems to me NJ has had no problems finding coaches before or since that time.